System and method for generation of shared signal frequency map for frequency sharing choice

ABSTRACT

System and methods are disclosed for collecting detailed list of frequencies along with any relevant information such as users, time of day, weather, ionospheric conditions, quality of the transmission. This information is used to create a detailed frequency map. The frequency map is continuously updated. The frequency map is used to generate an optimum list of frequency bands that can be used for frequency sharing. Having a real-time frequency map allows for fast and reliable switching between optimum frequencies if a primary user is detected during transmission.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a divisional of U.S. Pat. App. No. 17/170,448, filedFeb. 8, 2021, the entirety of which is hereby incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND 1. Field

The present disclosure relates to a system and method for frequencysharing and, more specifically, to generating a detailed frequency mapthat can be used to generate of a list of currently unused and optimalfrequency bands.

2. Related Art

As the number of connected devices keeps increasing, the demand foravailable frequency spectrum will keep increasing. Frequency spectrumsharing or frequency sharing is becoming more important to serve theever-increasing demand for available spectrum. Frequency sharing isusing the same frequency by two or more users (or stations) that areseparated geographically or using the same frequency at different times.One of the barriers to frequency sharing is the lack of information -what frequencies are available based on either geography or time ofusage. Another issue is that even though a frequency band may becurrently unused, it may not be optimal (the frequency band could benoisy), as the communication is affected factors such as distance,environment (terrain), time of day, season, ionospheric conditions etc.This is especially a problem when the communication is with a machine,sensor, data logger, etc. located at a remote location.

In addition, real time detection of currently available frequency bandsand then using the optimal frequency bands within the availablefrequency bands is not efficient. This detection and switching also haslatency implications and could potentially make the communicationunreliable.

SUMMARY

The following summary of the invention is included in order to provide abasic understanding of some aspects and features of the invention. Thissummary is not an extensive overview of the invention and as such it isnot intended to particularly identify key or critical elements of theinvention or to delineate the scope of the invention. Its sole purposeis to present some concepts of the invention in a simplified form as aprelude to the more detailed description that is presented below.

Having a detailed frequency map that allows the selection of currentlyunused and optimal frequency band(s) for communication will solve theproblems described above. Embodiments of the present disclosure aredirected to creating a real-time frequency map/database based on updatesreceived from all clusters and used to create a list of unused andoptimum frequency bands.

Embodiments are directed to automatically detecting transmission bytransmitter(s) external to the system, determining if transmitters areprimary or external transmitters. Details of the primary transmitter arecommunicated within the system. Details of the transmitter are stored inthe frequency map (database). Variations of characteristics of each ofthe transmission channel types and transmission modes may also becollected. Data regarding time of day, season, ionospheric conditions,and other relevant details such as weather may also be collected. Dailyand seasonal variations of these transmission modes and frequencychannels from any other databases may be determined and also stored.

The collected data is analyzed to make decisions of use transmissionmode and frequency channel. The frequency map may be continuouslyupdated with historical, current, and predicted frequency bandconditions along with other ancillary data.

The real time frequency map is used to generate a list of optimum andunused frequencies. The lists of optimum and unused frequencies arecommunicated to base stations (BR) and corresponding endpoints (EP). Thesystem analyzes information and continuously updates the frequency mapand communicates updated lists of optimum and unused frequencies.

Embodiments of the present disclosure are also directed to automaticallydetecting and reporting sub-optimal performance of any frequencyband(s), and communicating this information appropriately within thesystem.

Beacon stations (BES) may be used to continuously characterize spectrum.The frequency map may be used to strategically position the frequency ofthe beacon signals.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated into and constitute apart of this specification, illustrate one or more examples ofembodiments and, together with the description of example embodiments,serve to explain the principles and implementations of the embodiments.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a system in accordance with anembodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an exemplary BR (Base Station Radio),EP (Endpoint Radio), or BES (Beacon Stations) in accordance with anembodiment of the invention.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a method used at a server in accordancewith an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a method used at an endpoint in accordancewith an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing a method used at a base station radio orbeacon station in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of an exemplary server in accordance with anembodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments will be described below in more detail with reference to theaccompanying drawings. The following detailed descriptions are providedto assist the reader in gaining a comprehensive understanding of themethods, apparatuses, and/or systems described herein and equivalentmodifications thereof. Accordingly, various changes, modifications, andequivalents of the methods, apparatuses, and/or systems described hereinwill be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art. Moreover,descriptions of well-known functions and constructions may be omittedfor increased clarity and conciseness.

The terms used in the description are intended to describe embodimentsonly, and shall by no means be restrictive. Unless clearly usedotherwise, expressions in a singular from include a meaning of a pluralform. In the present description, an expression such as “comprising” or“including” is intended to designate a characteristic, a number, a step,an operation, an element, a part or combinations thereof, and shall notbe construed to preclude any presence or possibility of one or moreother characteristics, numbers, steps, operations, elements, parts orcombinations thereof.

System and methods are disclosed for collecting detailed list offrequencies along with any relevant information such as users, time ofday, weather, ionospheric conditions, quality of the transmission. Thisinformation is used to create a detailed frequency map. The frequencymap is continuously updated. The frequency map is used to generate anoptimum list of frequency bands that can be used for frequency sharing.Having a real-time frequency map allows for fast and reliable switchingbetween optimum frequencies if a primary user is detected duringtransmission.

FIG. 1 shows an exemplary implementation of a system as per anembodiment of the invention. System 100 shows base station radios (BR)120-01 and 120-01. Each BR radio 120 has associated endpoint radio (EP)110 and beacon station 140 (BES). In the figure, only two BR radios 120are shown, but the system 100 can have any number of BR 120, andassociated endpoint radios EP 110, and Beacon stations 140 (BES). The EP110 and BES 140 associated with each BR 120 are loosely grouped togetherin clusters 130. Cluster 130 refers to a loose affiliation of EndpointRadios (EP) 110 and Beacon Stations 140 (BES) surrounding a Base Radio(BR) 120. BR 120 communicates with a server 103 via Internet 101. FIG. 1does not show physical distances to scale, physical structures, terrainetc.

EP 110 refers to a radio located at an endpoint where a machine, sensor,data logger, etc. is located. Typically, EP 110 is used to control andlog data from a sensor etc. so it may be powered and operatedintermittently.

Beacon stations (BES) 140 continuously ping other BES 140 to scan thespectrum. BES 140 report to the server 103 details such as frequenciesthat are open and working, quality of communication using thesefrequencies. BES 140 also report relevant details such as frequenciesthat are being used, if the users are primary users or users external tothe system 100 and other relevant details such as time, season, weather,ionospheric conditions, etc. In some embodiments, BES 140 are used forefficiency; however, both EP 110 and BR 120 can perform BES 140functions. In one embodiment, an EP 110 and BES 140 may be associatedwith more than one BR 120. At any given time, EP 110 is associated witha single BP 120, but, as conditions change, EP 110 can be associatedwith a different BR 120. Both BES 140 and BR 120 are connected tointernet (though not explicitly shown in the figure).

BR 120 and BES 140 are connected to the server 103 via internet 101. BR120 and BES 140 connect to internet 101 via wired (Ethernet, Fiber etc.)or wireless connections (cellular, satellite etc.). The communicationbetween BR 120, BES 140 and server 103 via Internet 101 can be doneusing protocols such as TCP/IP (Internet Protocol), UDP etc. Server 103can be a dedicated centralized server, edge server, distributed server,or a cloud-based server.

Server 103 includes databases 104 to maintain the frequency map, whereit updates the frequency information on a continuous basis. In anembodiment of the invention, the frequency map is a distributedfrequency map where the BR 120, BES 140, EP 120 and server 103 maintainthe frequency map. BR 120 and BES 140 provide information aboutfrequency, frequency users and other relevant details such as time ofday, weather, season etc. BR 120 and BES 140 also provide details on thefree frequencies and the quality of these frequencies. EP 110 may nothave a real time frequency map as they may be operated intermittently.EP 110 may not have a full frequency map to save memory, compute, andpower resources in the EP 110 implementation. Server 103 can alsocommunicate with other external databases to gather informationregarding location, weather, ionospheric conditions, licensedtransmitters, or primary transmitters. Server 103 includes a frequencymanger 102, which also communicates with database 104. Frequency manager102 is a functional module that surveys, monitors, and controls accessto specific frequencies in the server.

In one embodiment, the signal used by BES 140 to scan the spectrum (bypinging other BES 140) has information that allows an EP 110 todetermine the frequency band(s) to be used to communicate with the BR120. Server 103 may instruct BER 140 to update this frequency band(s)(used by EP 110) based on analysis. In another embodiment, BR 120 maytransmit a beacon signal that will enable EP 110 to determine thefrequency band to be used to communicate with BR 120. The beacon signalmay be transmitted continuously by BR 120 or may be transmittedperiodically (once every 15 s, every 1 hour etc.). Server 103 based onanalysis may instruct BR 120 to update the beacon signal frequency,periodicity, and any other relevant details.

FIG. 1 illustrates how the system 100 detects primary transmitters150-01 and 150-2. The primary transmitters 150-01 and 150-02 do notbelong any cluster 130 in the system 100 and are not associated with anyBR 120 and are considered external to the system 100. Primarytransmitters (or primary users) typically refer to users that areauthorized (licensed) to use that particular frequency or frequencybands. In one embodiment, any transmitter 150 external to the system 100is considered to be a primary transmitter 150. In another embodiment,the system 100 can determine if the external transmitter 150 is anauthorized or licensed transmitter that is permitted to transmit at thatparticular frequency and only considers authorized users to be primarytransmitters. System 100 determines if a transmitter 150 is external tothe system 100 (i.e., it is not a BR 120, EP 110, or BES 140).

The terms frequency band or frequency channel are used interchangeablyin this invention. A frequency band is a list of frequencies that do nothave to line up on particular frequency boundaries and so on and theterm is used a compact way to refer to the frequency list(s). An optimumfrequency is one that has low noise or few errors. Noise here refers toan undesired disturbance to the useful information and is typicallymeasured using SNR (Signal to Noise ratio). A higher signal to noiseratio is more desirable.

The primary transmitter 150-01 is detected by cluster 130-02. Based onthe characteristics of the primary transmitter 150-01 and othercharacteristics, such as terrain, distance, weather, ionosphericconditions, etc., one or more radios (120-02, 110-03, 110-04, 110-nn,140-03, 140-04) inside the cluster 130-02 detect the primary transmitter150-02. If an EP (110-04, 110-05, 110-nn) in the cluster 130-02 detectsthe primary transmitter 150-01, it follows the method 400 shown in FIG.4 , where it updates the details of the transmission in its localdatabase and also updates BR 120-02. BR 120-02 follows the method 500shown in FIG. 5 and updates the server 103. Server 103 follows themethod 300 shown in FIG. 3 . In this case, server 103 analyzes thedetails and updates the frequency map and stores the details of theprimary transmitter 150-02 along with relevant details of thetransmission such as frequency band, duration of the transmission, dutycycle (transmission on/off periods), quality etc. Further, publiclyavailable published data of daily and seasonal data may be collected,and variations of the transmission modes and frequency channels may bedetermined are stored by the server 103. The data collected by system100 and from external sources are analyzed by the server 103. In thiscase, server 103 determines that no other clusters 130 besides 130-02are affected. After analysis, it appropriately communicates an updatelist of optimum frequencies to BR 120-02, which then updates other EP110 and BES 140 inside cluster 130-02.

Primary transmitter 150-02 is detected by cluster 130-01. As describedin the previous section, the EP 110 inside cluster 130-01 follow themethod 400 and updates server 103 via BR 120-02. BR 120-02 follows themethod 500 and server 103 follows method 300. After analysis, server 103determines that primary transmitter 150-02 could potentially affect theoperation of the radio stations inside cluster 103-01 and 103-02. So, inthis case server 103 updates the optimum frequencies to cluster 130-01and also to cluster 130-02. BRs 120-01 and 120-02 follow the appropriatesteps in method 500 as shown in FIG. 5 .

FIG. 2 shows an exemplary implementation of BR 120, BES 140, or EP 110.In this example, the EP, BES and BR are identical. Typically, BRconnects to many EPs 110. An EP 110 can do duty as a BP 120. However, BR120 typically has more capacity - more memory, bigger processor, biggerantennas, more bandwidth processing capability, etc. A criticaldistinction between the EP 110 and BR 120 is that BR 120 can communicatewith server 103. EP 110 are designed to be more power efficient. Asdiscussed earlier, BES 140 are used for efficiency and may have all thefunctionality included in the EP 110 or BR 120. As BES 140 are alwaysscanning the spectrum, they may be designed to operate in a more powerefficient manner when compared to BR 120. Just like BR 120, BES 140 cancommunicate with the server 103. The functionality of EP 110, BES 140,or BR 120 can be implemented using processors, software instructionsstored in memory and radio hardware using discrete components (such asprocessors, DSP (Digital Signal Processor) and memory), SoCs(System-on-Chip), Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), ASICs(Application Specific Integrated Circuit) or a combination of these.

The following discussion focuses on the implementation of BR 120 and EP110 and the details are applicable to BES 140. External communicationwith BR 120/EP 110 is achieved via an application interface 201. In thecase of BR 120, application interface 201 is used for external controland communication with the server 103 using protocols such as IP(Internet Protocol), UDP. In the case of EP 110, the applicationinterface 201 is used to communicate with devices such as data loggers,sensors etc. and can support a number of standard interfaces includingwired interfaces and wireless interfaces (Serial, Ethernet, USB, I2C,SPI, ZigBee etc.). Application interface 201 in BES 140 primarilyfocuses on communicating with server 103.

Encryption module 202 handles the encryption of data being transferred.Encryption module 202 also handles all other transport layer functionsuch as Segmentation and Reassembly, Connection Control, Error Control,and flow control.

Spectrum manager 203 is used to scan the operating spectrum for primarytransmitters 150 on a continuous basis. In one embodiment, BES 140 isalways scanning the spectrum for primary transmitters 150. The rawspectrum data obtained is used for detailed signal identification,update the spectrum conditions and historical trends. Spectrum manager203 maintains a local list of open and optimum frequencies and selectsthe final operating frequency bands. Spectrum manager 203 maintains acommunication handshake with the server 103, more specifically afrequency manager in the server 103. As discussed above, frequencymanager 102 refers to a functional module that surveys, monitors, andcontrols access to specific frequencies in the server. The frequencymanager 102 provides a list of optimum and open frequencies that can beused for communication within the clusters 130. The frequency manager102 is where the frequency map is built and maintained in real time. Thedetailed analysis and building of the frequency map may done wholly bythe server 103. In another embodiment, the analysis and building of thefrequency map may be done in a distributed fashion, where the tasks areshared between the BES 140, BR 120, and server 103. The real timeupdates to the frequency map may also done in a distributed manner.

A Data/Network Interface 204 manages and maintains the data connections.Data/Network Interface 204 includes functions such as “primarytransmitter detect and move,” “listen before transmission,” etc. TheData/Network interface listens for other users in the frequency bandsbefore transmits. During transmission, if it detects another primarytransmitter, it will stop the transmission on the current frequency bandand move to a different frequency band. Data/Network Interface 204determines the frequencies within the selected operating band for datatransfer.

Communication platform 205 along with radio hardware 206 handles thephysical point-to-point connection over the open RF spectrum andincludes functions such as modulation/waveforms, constellation mapping,transmit power control and antenna control.

The Data/Network Interface 204, communication platform 205 and radiohardware 206 also interact with the frequency manager within the server103. For instance, during a data transmission if the number of errorsdetected exceeds a predefined threshold - this information iscommunicated to the frequency manager. Frequency manager analyzes thisinformation along with the spectrum conditions and provides appropriateupdates (frequency bands) back to the BR 120/EP 120. It also will updatethe frequency map and the optimum frequency list. The optimum frequencylist is a list of frequencies that has high SNR or does not have anumber of errors exceeding a predefined threshold. Typically, the errorthreshold is application dependent.

FIG. 3 shows an exemplary flowchart of method 300 used in the server103. This method comprises a number of steps that are not necessarilyperformed in sequence. It will be appreciated that the method may alsoinclude fewer or additional steps.

The method beings with the server generating the initial frequency map(S310). Server 103 populates the initial frequency map with dataregarding clusters 130 and corresponding BR 120, BES 140 and EP 110.Examples of the initial data are: locations of EP 110, BES 140, and BR120, duty cycles (transmission on and transmission off periods) of thevarious EP 110. The location data gathered can be used by the server 103to gather a list of known primary transmitters 150 by querying eitherits historical records (in database 104) or querying other onlinedatabases or data sources. Server 103 can also establish policies on howto gather weather or ionospheric condition-related information based onthe locations gathered. The duty cycle information gathered is used tosetup communication policies with various BR 120 and correspondinglywith EP 110. Based on the frequency map thus populated, server 103 cancommunicate a list of open and optimum frequencies to the variousclusters 130. Server 103 creates a detailed regional and nationalfrequency map.

The method continues with a frequency update? (S320). Server 103receives information about a detection of a transmission at a newfrequency by a transmitter external to the system. It could also receiveupdates about the frequency map established. Examples include:sub-optimal performance in a particular frequency band used forcommunication within a cluster 130, changes in the transmission behaviorof already know primary transmitter 150, and information from anexternal database or source about a new primary transmitter 150. Server103 can also request a scan for an external transmitter 150 in afrequency band. Server can request a particular BES 140 to perform thescan, a subset of BES 140, EP 110, or BR 120 to perform the scan orrequest all clusters 130 to perform this frequency scan. Server 103 canreceive this frequency update from BES 140, BR 120, or EP 110. Themethod 300 continuously monitors for any frequency updates and willremain in S320 until a frequency update is detected.

The method continues with analyze/update BR (S330): Server 103 analyzesthe data received in the previous step (S320). In addition to the datacollected by the system 100 regarding frequency bands and channels, dataon variation of characteristics of each of the transmission channeltypes and transmission modes are also collected. Further publiclyavailable published data of daily and seasonal variations of thesetransmission modes and frequency channels are combined with thecollected data to make decisions on frequency channels. For example,server 103 analyzes the new frequency update (S320) to determine if thefrequency transmission is by a primary transmitter 150. Server 103 mayanalyze the sub-optimal (errors during data transmission) performance todetermine the root-cause and suggest appropriate solutions to fixsub-optimal performance. It may query weather databases and other onlinedatabases/data sources to gather information. Server 103 may optionallyupdate affect BR(s) 120 or clusters 130 and will iterate to ensureperformance issues are fixed. BES 140 are always scanning the spectrumfor primary transmitters 150 and also are providing updated informationregarding channel conditions. Based on this information, server 130 iscontinuously analyzing this information.

The method continues to update the frequency map (S340). Server 103updates the frequency map with the analysis (S330) and also updates thefrequency map with other ancillary data such as weather, time, season,etc. The frequency map is continuously updated. This real time data isused to continuously update the stored historic data. The frequency mapalong with the map of band conditions including historical, current, andpredicted are stored. The server 103 continuously updates the frequencymap based on the data provided by BES 140.

The method continues to update the optimum frequency list (S350). Theupdated frequency map (S340) is used to create or update a list ofoptimum frequencies and the server 103 communicates this updated list toall clusters 130. The server 103 may instruct BR 120 to update thebeacon signal. Server 130 may also instruct BER 140 to update theinformation included in the ping signal used by BER 140. The informationin the ping signal is used by EP 110 to communicate with the BR 120.

FIG. 4 shows an exemplary flowchart of the method 400 used in the EP110. This method comprises a number of steps that are not necessarilyperformed in sequence. It will be appreciated that the method may alsoinclude fewer or additional steps.

Method 400 shows how an EP110 communicates with BR 120. EP 110 firstdetermines what frequency bands to use to communicate with a BR 120, itthen connects to the BR and may receive an updated list of frequencybands. During communication with BR 120 it may detect that the frequencybands used to communicate are also being used a primary or externaltransmitter (150). This may be detected by actively listening to itstransmission. EP 110 may also segment the data to be transmitted intochunks and will “listen to transmitters 150” before transmitting of eachchunk. If no other transmitter 150 are found it will complete thecurrent transmission and may optionally power down. If a transmitter 150is found it could automatically to move a new frequency band andcomplete the current transfer. The method beings with EP scanning for abeacon signal (S420). Before EP 110 begins transmission, it looks forbeacon signal. The beacon signal is transmitted by BR 120. If a beaconsignal is detected, it learns what frequency bands to use to communicatewith BR 120. In another embodiment, EP 110 may try to scan the spectrumto detect the ping signal used by BER 140. The ping signal used by BER140 provides information on what frequency bands to use to communicateto BR 120. Alternately, it can use algorithms which consider lastconnection(s), history (time of day, season, weather), list of openfrequencies (previously communicated by BR 120). Scanning a beaconsignal to establish communication with BR 120 is the preferredimplementation as this quickest.

The method continues to connect to BR (S430): EP 110 connects to BR 120.Before transmission, EP 110 listens to any transmitters beforetransmission. After connecting with BR 120, EP 110 receives an updatedfrequency band(s) to use for communication.

The method continues to detect a primary transmitter (S440). EP 110detects a new primary transmitter 150 and moves to S450. If notransmitter 150 is detected, EP 110 will finish the current transmissionand may optionally power down until it is ready for a new transmission.

The method continues by using next frequency (S450). If EP 110 detects anew primary transmitter in step S440, EP moves to the next frequency inits frequency band (received previously in S410). EP 110 updates the BR120 of the new primary transmitter, then BR 120 updates the server 103with this information.

FIG. 5 shows an exemplary flowchart of the method 500 used in the BR 120or BES 140. This method comprises a number of steps that are notnecessarily performed in sequence. It will be appreciated that themethod may also include fewer or additional steps.

The method begins with BR/BES receiving a frequency list (S510). Themethod 500 for BR 120 and BES 140 starts in this block. BR 120 receivesinformation from server 103. BR 120 uses this information to identifyall EP 110 inside its cluster 130 and establishes a communication linkwith them. BR 120 will load its local frequency database and mayoptionally update frequency database based on initial instructionsreceived from server 103, or other information from BES 140, or any EP110 inside its cluster 130. BES 140 updates its local databases withlist of frequency bands, associated users, duty cycles, etc. In additionto the optimum frequency list, server 103 also provides beacon signalinformation to BR 120 and ping signal information to BER 140.

The method continues to scan/monitor (open) frequencies (S520). BR 120or BES 140 detects a transmission by an external transmitter orsub-optimal performance while transmitting in a particular frequencyband. within various nodes of its cluster 130. BES 140 will also becontinuously scanning for all open frequencies.

The method continues with a frequency update (S530). BR 120 or BES 140detects a new transmitter 150 or sub-optimal performance (whentransmitting in a particular band). The new transmitter 150 may havebeen detected by EP 110 in the cluster 130.

The method continues to update the frequency list (S540). BR 120 updatesits local database, it also updates all EP 110 in its cluster. BR 120sends details on the frequency update to server 103. Server 103 willfollow method 300 as previously discussed and update BER 140 and BS 120.

FIG. 6 shows an example of server 103 (referred to as server 10300)shown in system 100 of FIG. 1 . Referring to FIG. 6 , server 10300 caninclude one or more processors (10335), memories (10340), storagedevices (10311), computer readable medium (10309), network interfaces(10305) and other peripherals (10315, 10345 etc.). The networkinterfaces may include a transceiver, NIC, etc. The peripherals mayinclude user input devices 10315 such as a mouse, keyboard, etc. orother peripheral devices 10345 such as a USB connector, an audio device,a camera, etc. The storage devices 10311 may include hard disks. Thecomputer readable medium 10309 may include CDs, tape drives, etc. Theserver may also include a display device/controller (10325). FIG. 6illustrates a generic server, the server can be implemented as a cloudserver, edge server, distributed server, or combination. One or more ofthe methodologies or functions described herein may be embodied in acomputer-readable medium 10309 on which is stored one or more sets ofinstructions (e.g., software). The software may reside, completely or atleast partially, within the memory 10340 and/or within the processor10335 during execution thereof. The software may further be transmittedor received over a network.

The term “computer-readable medium” should be taken to include a singlemedium or multiple media that store the one or more sets ofinstructions. The term “computer-readable medium” shall also be taken toinclude any medium that is capable of storing, encoding or carrying aset of instructions for execution by a machine and that cause a machineto perform any one or more of the methodologies of the invention. Theterm “computer-readable medium” shall accordingly be taken to include,but not be limited to, solid-state memories, and optical and magneticmedia.

Embodiments of the invention have been described through processes orflow diagrams at times, which are defined by executable instructionsrecorded on computer readable media which cause a computer,microprocessors or chipsets to perform method steps when executed. Theprocess steps have been segregated for the sake of clarity. However, itshould be understood that the steps need not correspond to discreetblocks of code and the described steps can be carried out by theexecution of various code portions stored on various media and executedat various times.

Although a number of possible implementations have been described, theseare presented merely for the sake of explanation and teaching, and arenot limiting. Moreover, an implementation of an apparatus that fallswithin the inventive concept does not necessarily achieve any of thepossible benefits outlined above: such benefits are dependent on thespecific use case and specific implementation, and the possible benefitsmentioned above are simply examples.

Although the concepts have been described above with respect to thevarious embodiments, it is noted that there can be a variety ofpermutations and modifications of the described features by those whoare familiar with this field, only some of which have been presentedabove, without departing from the technical ideas and scope of thefeatures, which is defined by the appended claims.

Further, while this specification contains many features, the featuresshould not be construed as limitations on the scope of the disclosure orthe appended claims. Certain features described in the context ofseparate embodiments can also be implemented in combination. Conversely,various features described in the context of a single embodiment canalso be implemented in multiple embodiments separately or in anysuitable sub-combination.

Although the drawings describe operations in a specific order and/orshow specific arrangements of components, and are described in thecontext of access segments of data centers, one should not interpretthat such specific order and/or arrangements are limited, or that allthe operations performed and the components disclosed are needed toobtain a desired result. There are numerous hardware and softwaredevices that can be configured to forward data units in the mannerdescribed in the present disclosure with respect to various embodiments.

While the invention has been described in terms of several embodiments,those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that the invention isnot limited to the embodiments described, but can be practiced withmodification and alteration within the spirit and scope of the appendedclaims. The description is thus to be regarded as illustrative insteadof limiting. There are numerous other variations to different aspects ofthe invention described above, which in the interest of conciseness havenot been provided in detail. Accordingly, other embodiments are withinthe scope of the claims.

The invention has been described in relation to particular examples,which are intended in all respects to be illustrative rather thanrestrictive. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that manydifferent combinations will be suitable for practicing the presentinvention. Other implementations of the invention will be apparent tothose skilled in the art from consideration of the specification andpractice of the invention disclosed herein. Various aspects and/orcomponents of the described embodiments may be used singly or in anycombination. It is intended that the specification and examples beconsidered as exemplary only, with a true scope and spirit of theinvention being indicated by the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A radio comprising: an application interface to communicate with a server; an encryption module to encrypt data communicated by the application interface; a spectrum manager to scan an operating spectrum for an external transmitter; and a network interface to manage a data connection with the external transmitter.
 2. The radio system of claim 1, further comprising: a communication platform; and radio hardware.
 3. The radio system of claim 1, wherein the spectrum manager provides spectrum condition data for a frequency manager of the server.
 4. The radio system of claim 1, wherein the spectrum manager receives a list of optimum frequencies for communication. 